It was my first time using a miter saw-or any other power tool, for that matter-and I had just finished meticulously crosscutting four 7-inch faces for a plain wooden box. Despite being a novice woodworker, I was proud of my accuracy, with each piece perfectly square at 90-degree angles.
But when it came time to rotate the saw to a 45-degree angle to cut the miters along each edge, I ran into a dire situation: The sides of the box were too tall to fit against the saw's fence and safely make clean, accurate cuts. My design was flawed; I should have planned to create a smaller box from the get-go. Should I attempt the cuts anyway and risk sending wooden shrapnel flying in unpredictable, erratic patterns around the woodshop, or should I go back to the drawing board?
ChatGPT, the now-omnipresent artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot taking over the internet, is what got me into this mess in the first place. And when I desperately needed advice, the disembodied computer brain left me hanging.
A "SIMPLE" EXPERIMENT
A few weeks beforehand, I had provided ChatGPT with what I (mistakenly) thought to be a straightforward prompt: "What's a basic woodworking project I can start with?" In a matter of seconds, it cranked out a suggestion for a "simple wooden box."
I was heartened: It was finally time to revisit a skill I had written off completely back in middle school after a botched attempt at building a gumball machine. A substitute woodshop teacher had "helped" me cut the wood by taking over completely, severely burning the wood.
Denne historien er fra July - August 2023-utgaven av Popular Mechanics US.
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Denne historien er fra July - August 2023-utgaven av Popular Mechanics US.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Whether We Live in a Simulation - scientist Melvin Vopson, PhD, studies this exact thing- the possibility that the universe might indeed be a digital facsimile. And he claims to have evidence.
In the 1999 film the Matrix, Neo discovers A truth to end all truths-the universe is a simulation. While this premise provides fantastic sci-fi fodder, the idea isn't quite as relegated to the fiction section as one might expect. . In fact, University of Portsmouth scientist Melvin Vopson, PhD, studies this exact thing- the possibility that the universe might indeed be a digital facsimile. And he claims to have evidence.
The Ancient Language of Easter Island - Today, humans inhabit- or have, at the very least, explored- pretty much every corner of the planet. But that immense proliferation of Homo sapiens across the globe was a slow process.
With the first humans leaving Africa between 60,000 and 120,000 years ago, the species slowly spread across the Earth over many millennia. And one of the last places these ancient humans made their way to was the southeastern Pacific island of Rapa Nui, known more broadly as Easter Island.Located 2,360 miles off the coast of Chile, Rapa Nui is one of the most isolated places in the world. Its native people, who are also named the Rapa Nui, first arrived on the island's shores between A.D. 1150 and 1280, and lived in isolation until the arrival of Dutch navigator Jacob Roggeveen in 1722.
Underwater UFOs - A retired U.S. Navy admiral believes that the government should look to the oceans to help solve a mystery in the skies.
A retired U.S. Navy admiral believes that the government should look to the oceans to help solve a mystery in the skies. Rear Admiral Timothy Gallaudet, former Oceanographer of the U.S. Navy, recently published a paper arguing that unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP, more commonly referred to as UFO) and unidentified submersible objects (USO) are linked, and should be studied further.
Synching Up Our Circadian Rhythms - If you've ever done any kind of long-distance travel, or just woken up feeling under-rested thanks to daylight saving time, you know how important your circadian clock is.
If you've ever done any kind of long-distance travel, or just woken up feeling under-rested thanks to daylight saving time, you know how important your circadian clock is. Like many things in your body, your circadian rhythm is more complicated than it might seem on the surface. Rather than being entirely brain-based, it's actually controlled by a collection of several circadian clocks (central and peripheral) that all work together to keep your gears turning like a well-oiled machine.
SKINWALKER RANCH REVEALED
The 512-acre ranch has captivated real-estate tycoons, TV producers, and the U.S. government. What are they searching for?
Upgrade Your Living Room With This DIY - MID-CENTURY COFFEE TABLE
This project is easy to build and customize to fit your space.
CHASING AN ASTEROID
HOW NASA DEFIED INCREDIBLE ODDS TO GET ITS ASTEROIDHUNTING OSIRIS-REX MISSION OFF THE GROUND AND IN THE PROCESS UPENDED WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.
INDISPENSABLE LESSONS FROM A POP MECH LEGEND
With people moving around so much these days, it's perfectly natural to wonder how an editor can just come along and stick like a barnacle to the hull of Popular Mechanics, lasting for 35 years.
SAVING THE SUGAR BUSH
A technological revolution has transformed the ancient tradition of sugar making-with big implications for local economies and ecosystems imperiled by climate change.
MANIPULATION AND MEDICAL ETHICS
The taking of cervical samples wasn't the only medical procedure of dubious consent in Lacks's story.
